The internet is an extensive network of computers and computer networks interconnected through communication links. The computers on the internet exchange information using many services such as the World Wide Web (WWW) and Email. The WWW allows a server computer system (i.e. Web server or Web site) to send graphical information or Web pages to another computer connected to the internet (client computer system). The client computer system can interpret the Web page information and display it graphically using a Web browser.
Every Web page on the WWW can be uniquely identified with a Uniform Resource Locator or URL. Typically, to view a specific Web page on the internet a client computer system specifies the URL for that Web page on the browser to make a request that is sent to the Web server that supports that page. When the Web server receives the request, it sends that Web page to the client computer system. When the client computer system receives that Web page, it will then display the Web page using the browser. When the client computer displays a Web page from the Web site, it is said to be connected to that Web site. For the purposes of this disclosure, a Web site consists of the server computer system and peripherals (computer, CPU, software, memory (RAM, ROM) storage devices, databases, communication links, etc.) and personnel operating the site.
The internet, and more specifically the World Wide Web is an ideal medium for conducting surveys because a vast number of potential survey respondents have access to the WWW through client computer systems. Surveys related to such things as automobile owner satisfaction, consumer products, political issues, television programs, opinion polls, etc., can be effectively and inexpensively conducted over the Internet.
Many merchant or search engine Web sites ask “pop-up” survey questions related to various subjects, such as the Web sites themselves (i.e. rate the site) or perhaps to political issues (i.e. who will you vote for?). However, the results of such surveys are limited in that they are biased toward the opinions of respondents who happen to be purchasers of the specific merchants products or users of a specific search engine. Moreover, there is no assurance that malicious individuals have not provided multiple responses to the same survey question thereby skewing the results.
A Web site located at www.epinions.com enables registered members to express their opinion on a subject, service, or a product, by writing a review on the product, service or subject. The incentive to write a review is the potential of earning cash rewards through a scheme whereby a member who wrote a review receives royalties when another member rates the review. Whereas there may be the potential of earning a sum of money, the incentive is based on the ability to write a good review, as well as the respondent's availability of time to write a good review. Thus the potential respondent pool is limited. Furthermore, there is no method of verification that the reviewer actually owns, or has used the product or service she or he is writing a review about.
Another WWW site dedicated to collecting survey information can be located at www.Carvoice.com. This site specializes in automotive owner satisfaction surveys. This Web site requires that respondents provide their Email address to ensure that single individuals do not provide multiple responses. However, providing an Email address does not prove that the respondent actually owns or has used the vehicle surveyed. Moreover many Internet users have multiple Email addresses, thus allowing them to provide multiple responses to the same question under different Email addresses.
Thus consumers on the Internet who are interested in finding survey results on a specific product or any subject must rely on Web sites that have a limited respondent pool and/or questionable results.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a survey method and system which overcomes the limitations and disadvantages of the prior art.
One object of the present invention is to provide for a consumer surveying Web site where consumers can provide and obtain reliable and verifiable survey results.
Another object of this invention is to provide a survey method and system where the general consumer car owner population is an inherently interested respondent, thus enabling the establishment of an extensive unbiased sampling pool of respondents.
A further object of this invention is to provide a survey method and system where product satisfaction surveys are conducted and distributed, and where the respondents' ownership of the surveyed product is verified.
Still another object of this invention is to allow for a continuously updated body of survey results as respondents can continuously provide survey data by answering new or updating previous survey questionnaires.